20 October 2015
 Categories: , Articles

When tasked with opening and closing your garage door multiple times a day, your door needs all the lubrication it can get. Unfortunately, many homeowners are often clueless about this essential task, especially when it comes to choosing and using lubricant. The following offers an in-depth explanation on how to effectively choose and use the right lubricant for your home's garage door.

Choosing the Right Type of Lubricant

Silicone-based lubricants are a popular go-to for keeping a garage door's moving parts in motion. Most silicone lubricants come in a convenient spray form, allowing for precise lubrication with little mess. Silicone lubricants also offer exceptionally low friction and high longevity, in most cases.

White lithium grease is also a common go-to for garage door lubrication. Also available in spray form, this grease is a bit thicker than silicone and resistant to freezing and washing off. Ordinary motor oil can also be used in a pinch to lubricate various garage door parts, although you can expect a few drips on your garage floor (or anything else that happens to be below your garage door chain and tracks) when you use it.

Ordinary grease can also be used to lubricate moving garage door parts. However, regular grease tends to attract large amounts of dust and dirt. It can also harden over time, especially when constantly subjected to cold temperatures. As a result, you'll find yourself cleaning off old grease before you're able to add any more lubricant to your garage door's moving parts.

One lubricant to avoid at all costs is water-displacing lubricant. Contrary to its name, it's more of a solvent rather than lubricant. In fact, much of the lubricating properties displayed by most water-displacing lubricants occur due to the solvent dissolving rust and other unwanted compounds. While it's great for silencing squeaky doors and getting rusty parts moving again, it'll wear out quickly under the constant friction of a standard garage door.

Dealing with Nylon Rollers

When compared to traditional steel rollers, nylon rollers are not only quieter, but they also require less frequent lubrication than their steel counterparts. If you need to lubricate the rollers, make sure you apply silicone-based lubricant on the roller bearings. Nylon rollers with sealed bearings don't need any lubrication at all.

As you lubricate the roller bearings, use a clean cloth to keep the oil from coming into contact with the nylon roller. Also refrain from oiling the roller tracks when using nylon rollers, as this can cause the door to slip as it opens and closes.

Lubrication Tips and Tricks

If you're looking forward to lubricating your garage door, here are a few helpful tips to keep in mind:

• Always clean the tracks, hinges, stems and other parts of the garage door before adding your lubricant. This ensures that you won't run into any dust, dirt or caked on lubricant.
• Refrain from spraying lubricant into the garage door track. Not only does this cause the door to slip and potentially jam, but it also attracts dirt, dust and other particulate matter.
• Use motor oil or a non-silicone lubricant when oiling metal rollers. Using white lithium grease or silicone spray could cause the door itself to slip and jam.
• Although a very light coat of spray lubricant can help keep torsion and extension springs from rusting and corroding, it's usually not recommended by manufacturers. Creaking, popping noises that come from the springs are most likely a sign that the springs are nearing the end of their usable lifespan.

Most experts recommend that you lubricate your garage door's moving parts at least once a year. However, it's a good idea to check the hinges, chains, rollers and tracks every season to see if they need any further lubrication.For more information, contact a local garage door technician, or visit sites like http://www.702garagedoors.com.